Daily Yellowstone journal. [volume] (Miles City, Mont.) 1882-1893, 1887-06-18
BLOOD RUSTLeRS.
A Band of $50 Horses Driver
out of the Judith Basin
Recently.
The Fergus Outfit the Parties
Directly Interested and
Boys on the Trail.
HORSE THIEVES.

ohe hundred and fity Horses stolen from
Fergus Bros, Of the Judith Basin-A
Chance for the boundary Patrol to Show
Its Hand.
The River Press of June l3 says:
The Following letter received by T. g.
Power 4 Bro. last night gives q full
account Of one Of the boldest of the
many bold horse stealing raids that
have occurred In northern Montana
for years past. 1t now remains to be
seen whether the military, which
Gen. Brooke some time ago announced
was effectually standing guard along
our northern frontier, will capture this
band Of thieves, While il Is not pos.
itively known, it is perfectly safe to
assume that the raiders'are Blood In
dians from across the line. Whether
by Indians or whites, the fact remains
that along the northern frontier our
stock men are constantly harrassed by
thieves, and whether from .one side of
the line or the other it does not mat.
ter. They have time and again laid
their grievances before every known
authority, civil and military, and ap-
pealed in the strongest terms for ade-
quate protection. The River Press
has been called on so often to chronicle
crimes Of this nature that our readers
have become thoroughly sick Of the
business. Only short time ago our
statements wer called in question by
the military commander Of this die.
trict, who in an interview with the
Independent complscently informed
the public that all this talk about In
dian raids and horse stealing was
greatly exaggerated, and was circu-
lated by interested parties who wanted
to make money out Of the job; also
that the northern line was thorough
ly patrolled by his troops and thst
there was not the least occasion for
alarm. Facts do not seem to confirm
the statements then offered to our suf-
fering stock mel as panacea for all
past troubles and losses, and guafan-
tee against future depredations.
Our Indian agents, Maj. Field. Of
the Belknsp, and Maj. Baldwin, Of
the Blackfoot agency, are doing all in
their power to suppress the business.
Only few days ago Maj. Baldwin
sent his Indian police to gather the
stragglers to the reservation and keep
them there to prevent the possibility
of their lending aid to foreign Indians,
Maj. Field also promptly arrested q
horse stealing party Of his Indians
who had been over into Canada steal
ing from Canadian Indians, taking
thirty-fve head of horses from them
and then sent the thieves to the guard
house at Fort Assinniboine where
they will be kept until they can be
prosecuted just the same they were
white thieves.
Our Canadian friends across the line
have invariably done all they could to
promptly arrest their raiding Indians
who have been on this side OF the line
stealing stock, and promptly returned
property to the owners In every In.
stance where it could be found.
Ifthe military arm Of our govern
meut, which Is well represented In
this section. should make one capture
of the raiding Indian thieves, In the
open field, we will take great pleasure
In publishing the fact to the world.
Should the Fergus Bros., who ar,
among our most prosperous and high
ly respected stock men, fail TO recover
their animals the loss will be heavy
one to them. Following Is the letter
COAL BANKS, NJ. T.. June IL, 1887
&C. Power q Bro, FoIt Benton:
/ am here In search Of our bands o
horses-mostly mares and colts an,
three and four year old geldings, ant
with them one Clydesdale and on
trotting stallion. They have usual.
been kept in two bands, q stallion
with each. the bands numbering abou
$50 head, branded + on right shoul
der. One band was kept near th
mountains and the other near tn
horse ranch. They were seen by Mi
Thomas Shea about o'clock on tn
morning of the 9th inst, being rapid.
driven under the lash by parties sup
posed to be Blood Indians. He saw
them stop to fix their saddles, bu
could not tell whether they were In
dIans Of whites. He afterward saw
three more men and found broker
leather strap with scslIoped edges OF
their trail. At that time the first oan'
must have been driven eleven o
twelve miles to have reached the poin
where he saw them, while the other
and larger band, had onlysbeen drive